Milestones

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DIED. DAVID SPEDDING, 58, who from 1994 to '99 was the man known as C, the traditional designation for the head of Britain's Secret Intelligence Service (MI6); of lung cancer; in London. The post had its James Bondish arcana (C's top-secret memos, for example, were supposedly written in green ink, which only C could use). But Spedding became a rather public spy, even though his photograph was never published until his death. The infamous Soviet mole Kim Philby revealed his name in 1971 during a Moscow-London spy spat. Spedding later reorganized the post-cold war service, focusing on his specialty, the Middle East. In 1984 he reputedly helped thwart an Abu Nidal attack on Queen Elizabeth when she was on a visit to Jordan.

SENTENCED. MOHAMED RASHED DAOUD AL-'OWHALI, 24, Saudi Arabian terrorist convicted on 213 counts of murder in the 1998 bombing of the U.S. embassy in Nairobi, Kenya; to life in prison without parole; in New York City. Al-'Owhali's life was spared after the jury deadlocked on whether to impose the death penalty.

EXECUTED. TIMOTHY MCVEIGH, 33, convicted terrorist whose truck bomb killed 168 people in Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995; by lethal injection; in Terre Haute, Ind. McVeigh spent his last day writing to friends, napping and eating a final meal of mint chocolate-chip ice cream. McVeigh made no final statement, offering instead a handwritten copy of the 1875 poem "Invictus." He was the first person executed by the Federal Government in 38 years.

DIED. JERRY STERNER, 62, playwright who penned the 1989 off-Broadway hit Other People's Money; of a heart attack; in New York City. Back when the New York subway cost 15[cents] to ride, Sterner worked the graveyard shift as a token seller. During nearly six years manning his booth, he wrote seven plays.

DIED. JOHN MCKAY, 77, outspoken coach who led the University of Southern California to four national titles in 16 seasons and established it as a football titan; in Tampa, Fla. During McKay's 1960-75 tenure, U.S.C. picked up the nickname Tailback U. and churned out Heisman Trophy winners Mike Garrett and O.J. Simpson. In 1975 McKay left the college ranks to take the helm of a new NFL expansion team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In their first two seasons, the Bucs lost a record 26 straight games. Asked what he thought of his team's execution, McKay said, "I think it's a good idea."

DIED. J.C. FURNAS, 95, prolific writer, biographer and historian of American society; in Stanton, N.J. His most famous article, "...And Sudden Death," examined automobile deaths and driving safety. Reader's Digest reprinted 8 million copies, and it helped prompt safer highway and auto designs.

DIED. VIKTOR HAMBURGER, 100, leading experimental embryologist who parsed out the intricate workings of the developing nervous system; in St. Louis, Mo. Hamburger was collaborating with two other scientists in 1954 when his lab isolated the first trophic factor--chemicals that influence cell survival and help govern growth. Though Hamburger received many awards for his discoveries, he was overlooked by the Nobel committee, which honored his colleagues in 1986.